Country Band (film)
Country Band is a 2015 American 3D computer-animated musical action-adventure film produced by DreamWorks Animation. The film is directed by David Soren, and written by David Reynolds, and stars the voices of Jennifer Lopez, Emma Stone, Nick Kroll, Pitbull, Amanda Seyfreid, Josh Gad, Uma Thurman, Ice-T, and Sam Elliott. In the film, a girl named Onyx Star starts a country band named Graystar, and picks Crescent Flitter, Lucky Swirl, Sunbeam Glory, and Brawny Runner, with Rain Runner being their manager, they sign up for a musical showdown. But a rival band led by a guy named Groff, plans to win. So, Graystar has to win it all. 20th Century Fox released the film on November 20, 2015 in the United States and Canada. The film received generally positive reviews from film critics. Observers praised the visuals, voice acting, and music. The film was also a box office success, grossing over $159 million in the United States and $518 million worldwide. The film was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Animated Feature Film. A television series titled Country Band: Country Music Adventures debuted on Netflix on October 7, 2016. A sequel, titled Country Band 2, is scheduled to be released on January 31, 2020. Plot Coming soon! Cast * Jennifer Lopez as Onyx Star * Emma Stone as Crescent Flitter * Nick Kroll as Groff * Pitbull as Maxil * Amanda Seyfried as Lucky Swirl * Josh Gad as Zio * Uma Thurman as Sunbeam Glory * Ice-T as Brawny Runner * Sam Elliott as Rain Runner Production The idea for the film was conceived by David Soren in 2008, while working on Monsters vs. Aliens. He and the rest of the people at DreamWorks Animation then started working on Country Band ''after the finished production of ''Monsters vs. Aliens. DreamWorks announced the film to the public in November 2010, where it was humorously titled as the Untitled Country Music Film. David Soren was on board to direct the film, with David Reynolds writing the script. In March 2013, DreamWorks announced that the film would be titled Country Band. On August 2, 2013, DreamWorks announced that Jennifer Lopez and Sam Elliott joined the voice cast. By September 14, 2013, actors Josh Gad and Ice-T were in negotiations to join the cast. On October 9, Nick Kroll and Pitbull were confirmed additions to the cast. On November 9, Jennifer Lopez had begun recording for the film's songs. On December 5, 2013, Emma Stone, Amanda Seyfried and Uma Thurman have joined the cast. Country Band ''was initially set for release on January 29, 2016, but DreamWorks pushed the film two months later to November 20, 2015, taking over the original release slot held by DreamWorks Animation's upcoming film ''Kung Fu Panda 3, which in turn had been pushed from November 20, 2015 to January 29, 2016. Music The film's official soundtrack was released on November 6, 2015 by RCA Records. Release Country Band premiered at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on November 7, 2015, which was attended by the cast and crew as well as some celebrities such as Jamie Foxx, Modern Family's Ariel Winter, and Academy Award nominee Quvenzhané Wallis. The film was released on November 20, 2015. Marketing The official teaser was released on March 27, 2015, and was shown before Home, Furious 7, Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2, Avengers: Age of Ultron, Jurassic World, and Inside Out. The official theatrical trailer was released on July 10, 2015, and was shown before Minions, Dick Grayson, Shaun the Sheep Movie, Metro Cone Forever, Hotel Transylvania 2, and Goosebumps. TV spots began to air between October 20 to December 11, 2015. Jazwares made a press release saying they would sign a contract with DreamWorks Animation to produce toys to promote the film. A tie-in mobile game titled Country Band: Fusion Madness was also announced to accompany the film's release, developed by Criterion Games and published by EA. Other companies also joined with DreamWorks to promote the film, including McDonald's, Kellogg's, Bounty, Hanes, McFarlane Toys, Funko, and Mott's. Home media Country Band was released on February 2, 2016 for digital downloads with a Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand for a February 23, 2016 release. All releases include a new short film, How to Be a Country Singer. Reception Box office Country Band ''grossed $159.6 million in the United States and Canada and $359.3 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $518.9 million. Critical reception On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 79% based on 161 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "Though basically a recapitulation, ''Country Band ''has colorfully animated country with its bids in humor, energy, and country music pleasure." On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating, the film has a score of 70 out of 100, based on 63 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Accolades The film was nominated for Best Animated Feature Film at the 73rd Golden Globe Awards, However, the award went to ''Inside Out. Sequel Main article: Country Band 2 In December 2015, Tom McGrath said there were ideas for a sequel to the film, and that writer Reynolds had made a few script drafts for it. On January 25, 2017, DreamWorks Animation announced a sequel to its 2015 animated film Country Band, with Jennifer Lopez, Emma Stone, Nick Kroll, Pitbull, Amanda Seyfreid, Josh Gad, Uma Thurman, Ice-T, and Sam Elliott returning for the sequel, joined by Will Arnett, Kristen Bell, James Corden, Nicolas Cage, Halsey and Lil Yachty. On October 4, 2017, the release date for the sequel was announced for April 17, 2020. Along with the new release date, it was announced that Dohrn will be returning to direct and Shay will return to produce the sequel. On December 6, 2017, the film was pushed back to a February 7, 2020 release. On December 11, 2018, it was moved a week to January 31, 2020. Category:EvanRocks Wiki